Mobile wireless devices, such as cellular phones, are conveniently portable and easy to carry around. Because of their portable nature, they are also susceptible to theft and difficult to recover once stolen.
Some types of wireless devices employ authentication techniques to verify that a person using the device is an authorized operator. For example, cellular phones can lock their interface, removing the ability for a person to use the device, unless or until an authentication measure is successfully performed. One such authentication measure is the entry of a pre-established code, such as a personal identification number. Another authentication measure sometimes used is biometrics to determine that a potential operator of the device is authorized one.
Such authentication measures render the wireless device inoperative to a thief after it has been stolen. They do not actively prevent or inhibit theft of the device. By preventing an unauthorized user from, for example, placing calls with a stolen cellular phone, however, they reduce the likelihood that the rightful owner will be charged for potentially expensive charges incurred by the thief. Additionally, widespread knowledge of the uselessness of theft of such devices can operate as a deterrent, making such theft futile and reducing the incidence rate. Such locking techniques, however, do not assist the rightful owner in recovering the stolen device.